1. Field of Invention
This invention relates to medication containers, specifically to such containers that are arranged as calendars for the aid in consumption of the medications.
2. Description of Prior Art
This invention relates to a system and apparatus for the containing and communicating of medication regimens, particularly ones that are complex and/or frequently changing. Because polypharmacy (use of many medicines, drugs (including herbal or “over the counter”) in the treatment of disease) is usually associated with serious disease or with multiple concurrent diseases or maladies it typically involves more persons in the management of the patient's health. The patient himself (or herself, for that matter) is the typical primary user and compiler of that information and he may need an aid to managing and communicating that information to all his other healthcare providers and assistants (some examples: physicians, pharmacists, nurses, homecare nurses, relatives, friends). Depending on the individual patient, the regimen of polypharmacy may include from two to over one hundred medicines and supplements. The number and type of medications may change frequently and can be confusing, especially when the change is in name only (from branded to generic) or when the patient's health is stable but their provider's formulary changes. Communicating the regimen succinctly, plainly, and accurately can be a cumbersome task considering the commonly short duration of a consultation. Whatever device a patient employs, it must be portable and durable enough to make many trips to his providers.
There have been many attempts at providing an aid to these persons but these attempts have missed solutions to the key needs of patients with polypharmacy in their inventions. Additionally, these inventions do not address many of the communication needs of low-literacy, illiterate, mentally handicapped, or dyslexic users.
Both U.S. Pat. No. 4,693,371 to Malpass (1987) and U.S. Pat. No. 1,583,419 to Cappuccilli (1977) show pill trays for organizing and dispensing containers for medication regimens which are arranged to show solid medications to be consumed at set times during the day. Both are designed to be rigid and secure, non-collapsible box structures to hold medications for the later consumption of those medications. Both rely on 3 things to understand the regimen: the physical layout of the cavities in rows and columns, printed information at the indices of those rows and columns to be read by the user as to the significance of that row or column,
Malpass has added to this pill-grid box another adjacent container to hold an exemplification of the appropriate dosage of medication to be taken. It is designed in such a way that this example dosage portion of the device is not to be accessed by the user, but set out by a pharmacist or other person and will be difficult to open so as to only allow the healthcare provider to access it.
In one embodiment of the container, a series of cassettes exist so that the medications may be pooled together and filled so that it might be removed and transported by the user. When used in combination with the main tray it serves to reduce the possibility of wrong dosage, however when used alone it is little more than a compartmentalized container with multiple medications arranged by preferred medication time.
Another U.S. Pat. No. 1,844,189 to Stuart (1928) shows other methods of displaying medicines whereby the medication itself is prominently displayed in the same container as a reservoir of the same medication.
U.S. Pat. No. 1,717,060 to Mottayaw (1926) describes a tray for charting the timing of medication administration that may be examined by a doctor to see if his directions are being followed, but incorporates nothing for the written communication as to the identity of each medication. It also makes no provision for easily understanding the total daily intake of medications.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,575,297 to Schutten (2003) describes a set of pockets for medications and significant space for writing copious information about the medications, though because it has only one example medication both the patient and any doctors must still make an interpretation of the written data thereon as to the scheduling of the regimen. In addition, because only one example pill is included, there is no “safety margin” for a full one-day supply of those medications taken more than once a day.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,550,618 to Peterson (2003) is of a constant size and cannot expand or contract with each medication gained or lost in the patient's regimen. This limitation can be significant when the regimen is much smaller or larger in comparison to the size of the purchased grid. It also requires an add-on card to explain the contents of the apparatus, which may be lost and render the entire set of medications unusable with a subsequent change in the regimen.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,372,258 to Daneshvar (1994) also envisions a maximum regimen size as it is not readily expandable. It envisions one example pill or medication and written information about the timing of consumption of the medication, such that the written information is critical to the user's understanding of that timing. It also does not easily allow the user to, for example, take only the medications necessary with him to the pharmacist when refilling prescriptions. If the user desired to only take the prescriptions to be refilled, he would have to partially empty the container and rearrange it on his return.
Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 3,003,273 to Tapper (1961) describes some methods for packaging small quantities of products like tablets with a label area large enough to include whatever written information is required by law to accompany the product.
Insofar as I am aware, there has not thus far been developed a device or method which makes easy and convenient the communication of a complex medication regimen between healthcare providers and patients that conveniently accommodates large, changing regimens and users with difficulty understanding written medical information.